Week 1 done--Three to go

Hello from Lima! Here I am back in Lima for the weekend; last night I dropped off the first group that came down to start work on the "bocatoma" or water/dam/irrigation project. The picture you see to the left is what the Bocatoma looked like before we came. We are dismantling this makeshift dam to replace it with a long-term concrete one that will not need to be rebuilt every year. It will increase the water pressure to the local village; allowing farmers to adequately water their crops and provide sufficient drinking, cooking and bathing water for this small town of 250 called Lucumo.

According to our rough calculations, the group came to the conclusion that we had moved roughly 30 tons of materials 1/4 of a mile; either on our backs and shoulders or in wheelbarrels. Due to the lack of infrastructure in the area there is no way to get a large dump truck down to where we are working so everything must be moved by hand. So not only did we carry a lot of weight we also walked almost 5-6 miles each day carrying those same materials; and that's not stretching the truth.

By the end of the week, Friday, we had most of the old structure dismantled and we used the pieces to start constructing a bridge so that we can get the materials across the river where all the work will take place. It's such a complicated process, but it will be very worth it. We will be making life a lot easier and less complicated for the people of Lucumo by the time this project is finished. Below see a picture of the makeshift bridge in process:



I will continue to post weekly about the progress we are making on the project when I come back to Lima on Friday evenings. Please keep me and the groups in your prayers during this great time of service and work for our brothers and sisters in Lucumo. May the Lord allow us not only to give the people in Lucumo water to quench thirst, but may He give us His words, His hands, and His feet, that He will quench the eternal thirst that all of us have...